Today we have Author Sue Perkins with us. Sue grew up in Devon, England, but after she married my husband she spent some years traveling the world, then started a family. They emigrated to New Zealand with their two children in 1986 and subsequently became New Zealand citizens. Her son and daughter have flown the nest and her, her husband, dog and live on a three acre property at the top of New Zealand’s South Island. She works part time as a graphic artist for a local trade paper. Like all writers, she loves reading, but other interests include genealogy and zumba.A contemporary romance Broken Heart is available as a FREE READ from Desert Breeze Publishing. This is a prequel to her contemporary sweet romanceThree Hearts which is also available from Desert Breeze Publishing.

Hi, Sue. Please tell your readers something interesting about yourself AND/OR your favorite character.My favourite character is always the main character in my current Work In Progress which at this time would make it Reva. She's a young girl who's father's job moves them around a lot and she finds it difficult to make new friends. Reva retreats into writing a fantasy. One night her garden gnome commands her to follow him into the fantasyland she has imagined. Here she is accused of bringing evil to the land. Only she can make things right. Something interesting about myself. I lived in Kuwait for two years. A very good experience learning about other cultures. Most of the friends I made there came from other countries. Germany, America, Spain, Malaysia, India, Kenya. I wish I'd kept in touch with them, but everyone moved on. I also travelled the world with my husband when he worked at sea with the Merchant Navy. Went to many different places and viewed so many different ways of life.

What was your favorite book as a teen? Tell us about it and how it affected you as a person. Foundation by Isaac Asimov. It started me on the science fiction trail and I later found myself drawn toward the fantasy genre as written by Anne McCaffrey and David Eddings. Isaac Asimov definitely became my favourite author at that time. Although I have to admit A.E. van Vogt's Slan was definitely a favourite too. All these authors were responsible for my journey into writing fantasy booksTell us about the genre you have chosen to write for. Why do write specifically for them?I love to write Fantasy books both for adults, young adults and middle grade. There's something about building your own world, putting people, animals and aliens into the world then weaving the story around them. I find when I sit down to write this genre the words flow with no hesitation.

Tell us about your new book. How did it come about and share your favorite excerpt/scene.This book won't be released until October 2011 by MuseItUp Publishing in their MuseTween line, but I love it. It's my first Middle Grade book to be published. The setting is a library and the book is divided into three parts. The first part concerns the grand opening. A street urchin takes the opportunity to sleep in the warmth and comfort of the library. He gets trapped by the Spirit Stealer who steals half his spirit. The second part is set in modern times with another boy shut in the library. He tries to help a girl recover half of her spirit which has been stolen by the Spirit Stealer. The third part is centred on ridding the library of the Spirit Stealer.How has writing affected your life? And what’s your favorite part of being a writer?Writing has enriched my life. I find I am far more interested in what is going on around me. It might give me and idea for a novel. I also try to give back to the writing community, but time often prevents this. My favourite part of being a writer is writing the words "-end-" and then starting the editing. I love editing. Does that make me weird?What advice can you give regarding the writing process?To learn how to format and submit manuscripts I attended a creative writing course. There I learned that the secret of writing is re-writing. Don't give up on your first draft, edit and hone the words as many times as it takes until they are ready for submitting to a publishing house.Regarding publication and marketing, what advice can you offer aspiring writers?Keep trying. I don't want to put anyone off, but it took me 17 years from when I seriously began to submit to publishers and when my first book was published. Perseverance is the name of the game.Then of course the hard work starts with marketing your book. Accept advice from other authors. They know how hard it can be.How can your fans find, follow or friend you?My webpage is http://www.sueperkinsauthor.com and my blog is http://sueperkinsauthor.blogspot.comNot sure if this will work but this should connect you to my Facebook pagehttp://www.facebook.com/suepernz - I think you have to be signed in to Facebook before you can find this otherwise it tells you not available. Thanks for joining us today SueC.K. Volnek

A Horse Called TroubleA troubled teen must overcome her abused past to save the defiant horse who taught her to love and trust again.Available in Print and e-book

View the book trailer for A Horse Called Trouble

Welcome to my blog.

Hi. I'm C.K. Volnek, Author and Story teller. I love books and photography, dogs and horses, hiking and tulips, kids, pasta, sunsets and of course…writing. Please come back often and share your passion in writing..